Henry County Conservation board holds firm on canoe rental policy, camping fees

BY BRYCE KELLY

Mt. Pleasant News

Some things are better left unchanged. That was certainly the thoughts of the Henry County Conservation Board on Monday night as they discussed the possibility of making changes to the 2016 camping fees and rates, and the county?s canoe rental policies.

In regards to the county?s canoes, the topic was brought to the attention of the board after a request was made by Project AWARE to borrow or rent out the county?s vessels.

?It?s always been our policy that we don?t lend out our canoes or let people rent them. They have always remained only for the use of county conservation programs,? said Henry County Conservation Director, John Pullis, as he reviewed with the board what the conservation department?s past stance has been on the subject.

Project AWARE, a program ran by the Iowa DNR, is a volunteer organization dedicated to cleaning Iowa?s rivers of trash, garbage and other pollutants. This year?s work project for Project AWARE will be focused on the lower Des Moines River from Eldon (Wapello County) to the Turkey Run Access, in Lee County. It will be held July 11 to July 15.

In preparation for the event, officials from Project AWARE have been making requests to various conservation boards around the state for use of their canoes.

?I am familiar with this (Project AWARE) and my main concern is that the canoes might not come back in the same condition that they were in originally,? said Cari Nicely, Henry County Naturalist, saying that the types of items that are pulled from the river and placed in the canoes could scratch, dent or otherwise damage the county?s vessels.

The board eventually agreed to decline Project AWARE?s request for the canoes, citing that as this year?s Project AWARE event isn?t taking place in the county or as part of a Henry County Conservation program, the department couldn?t justify lending out the canoes.

As for the county?s camping rates and fees for 2016, the board saw no reason to raise or lower the prices. Therefore, the rates and fees will remain the same as least year?s rates.

In other news, the board moved to strike the ability of renting out the Henry County Conservation Board Room and the Nature Center from the department?s policy. In the past, it was possible for members of the community to rent out the board room and the Nature Center for gatherings or meetings. However, as the board saw few requests to do so over the last several years, they moved to remove the option all together.

Before adjourning from its regular meeting, the board was given the Henry County Conservation Board comprehensive plan to review. Further discussion of the plan will be had at future meetings.

Also before adjournment, the board officially introduced its two newest board members, Tony Brown and Kat Zeglen. Brown and Zeglen were brought on to replace past board members, John Klopfenstein and Lori Muntz.

The next Henry County Conservation Board meeting will be held on Monday, March 7, at 6 p.m., in the Henry County Conservation Board Room.